The 20th annual Virginia Film Festival had what many felt was the strongest line-up of films in its history. This was, in part, because 2007 was such an extraordinary year in world cinema. Thanks to the reputation of the Festival and its well-connected Advisory Board, distributors provided us with exceptional and soon-to-be award-winning films like The Savages, Persepolis, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, Starting Out in the Evening, and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.